Aloha UH Hilo and Hawaiʻi Community College Faculty, Staff, and Students:

In anticipation of Tropical Storm Lala, please be advised that the University of Hawai'i at Hilo and Hawaiʻi Community College campus, offices, and off-campus locations will be closed Saturday August 15 through Sunday, August 16, 2026, for precautionary measures. Campuses plan normal operations to return on Monday, August 17, 2026.

The University of Hawaiʻi Community College System has been ranked the 11th best community college system in the nation by personal-finance website WalletHub. The 2026 study evaluated statewide systems across key metrics of cost and quality, including tuition rates, graduation rates and student-to-faculty ratios.

Hawaiʻi Community College Assistant Professor of Biology Jennifer Sims has been awarded a Fulbright U.S. Scholar Award for the 2026–27 academic year. She will teach and conduct research at the University of Malta.

Two-dozen faculty, staff and student mentors from Hawaiʻi Community College, Kauaʻi Community College and Kapiʻolani Community College traveled to the Salish coast of Washington June 25–July 2 as part of the Hawaiʻi Pāmaomao Indigenous Exchange Program.

“Visiting with other Indigenous communities reminds us that while every nation has its own histories, stories, worldviews and ways of life, those relationships deepen our understanding of our own kuleana (responsibility),” said Drew Kapp, a Hawaiʻi Community College associate professor of geography.

The University of Hawaiʻi is inviting nominations and self-nominations for the position of interim chancellor to lead Hawaiʻi Community College during the national search for a permanent chancellor. This follows the retirement of Chancellor Susan Kazama on July 31 after more than 40 years of service to the University of Hawaiʻi.

For more than three decades, Richard Stevens has been an educator, mentor and environmental steward, inspiring generations of students at Hawaiʻi Community College–Pālamanui.

Now, the beloved professor is sharing the deeply personal tales that shaped his life in his new book, Storyland.

The Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Hawaiʻi (JCCIH) recently presented Hawaiʻi Community College with a $20,000 donation raised through its annual Taste of Hilo fundraiser, providing expanded support for student scholarships and initiatives across the college.

Beginning this fall, Hawaiʻi Community College’s Kō Education Center in Honokaʻa will offer a new pathway for North Hawaiʻi students to begin college close to home through the “First Year Here at Kō” program.

The program allows students to complete their first year of general education courses locally through face-to-face morning classes designed to support students balancing academics, work, family, and community commitments. The program also gives students an opportunity to explore future academic and career pathways while completing transferable general education coursework.

As Hawaiʻi works to eliminate more than 83,000 cesspools by 2050, Hawaiʻi Community College and UH Maui College are preparing the workforce needed to help make it happen.